Further on Signs in Drama

By

 Obododimma Oha

-- Drama is defined by Aristotle as an imitation of life. This implies that signs of life are also imitated there for watchers to believe what they see. That also implies that the semiotics and other aspects of life are imitated. 

* The signs of life usually imitated in drama are: 

- -- speeches (what people say and how they say them

-- Movement of people and things

-- What people put on (costumes)

-- Colours of things

-- symbolic objects

-- space

-- postures

* It is important to point out here that plays are meant to be performed on the stage created for that purpose. They are not meant to be read as textbooks and we only imagine the actions. The signs are therefore what could be seen to determine whether the production of the play is appropriate.

* So, let discuss the groups indicated earlier.

-- Speeches

Speeches characters make or are made to make are important signs, in fact, an index to character or orientation, age, pursuits, perceptions, etc. Every person on stage is required to speak in "character," that is, to reflect character. What is the consequence of not speaking in character?

Speeches make the plays look real. If they are unnatural, people won't see the play as believable. So, as an imitation of life, the play has to use the variety of language that is possible in the given circumstance.

The following questions are worth asking to test our understanding of speeches in plays:

-- What are speakers doing to others through what they utter?

-- How are the utterances related to goals that the characters pursue?

-- Are the speeches located in another context of time? 

-- Do the speeches show that the characters belong to a particular group? 

 - - What problems do you see in the speeches as signs? 

-- Movement of people and things:

We also need to discuss the semiotics of movement in plays. Movement is performed or caused by living things. And movement may have meaning attached to it or it may back up other types of signs in making meaning in plays. Movement really shows an imitation of perceived action to perform action.

Movement can be of parts of the body.

There could also be the movement of other things.

Let us focus on

-- symbolic movements, understood or that are supposed to be understood by other characters.

-- unintentional movements that may be misunderstood.

-- Movements that indicate that the play is an action.

If movement is to seen as a sign, it means that it is capable of communicating something. In this case, other characters and the audience can see the movement and believe that it means something. So, observation is central and the audience is invited to be critical. In life, too, we need to be critical of f what we see. 

The following questions are worth asking about observed movement :

-- How does this movement relate to the pursuit of the character?

-- What in life is this kind of movement normally associated with? 

-- Is the movement a sign of condition? 

-- Generally, what message does the movement send in the play? 

--- What people put on:

What people put in a play could mean something. In other words, they could be sending messages to other people through their clothes. The clothes could be

-- uniforms 

-- materials associated with a given group in society 

-- signs of rebellion against control or a membership 

-- a shibboleth, inclusion or exclusion

-- Etc

What people put on helps us in classifying or locating them in society. In a play, they help the production to be realistic. 

-- Colours of things:

Colours of things could also be signs in a play. The commonest is the color of the environment. Night is normally black and day bright. The breaking of day is light coming gradually. A shrine may be colored red, suggesting danger. This tallies with red strips of cloth used in building the shrine. 

The coloring of Satan or bad things as black and heavenly characters as white is stereotypical and racial. One finds these stereotypes in the Christian plays of Mount Zion Ministries of Mike Bamiloye. 

Symbolic objects :

Some objects feature in daily life but some gradually become associated with some things. In plays, this symbolization features a lot. A sacrifice at a crossroad for some spirits may be imitated. In that case, the objects in the sacrifice are made to look real, while they are not. 

Using objects to represent the presence of some gods or goddesses, beliefs, ideologies, etc is a way of making the play believable and realistic. It is part of the imitation. 

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 Objects used in the symbolization would depend on

-- where the play tries to represent

-- the age or period being captured

-- the comprehension by the audience (shared meanings).

Space:

Distance between one thing and another or one person and another is important in plays. We have said it may signify

-- power differences

-- avoidance

-- designation of social differences.

How a space is managed would show

-- How far a director of the play understands the cultural background of the writing

-- Whether space features in the semiotics of the play

-- the nature of the stage.

Concluding Remarks :

For us to understand drama as an imitation of life, we need to consider its signs.

The signs are meant to be put on stage, not just read.

It is important that we pay attention to some cultural signs that feature in drama.